The John O’Gaunt Golf Club was first constituted in 1948,
but it was not until 1977 that the Senior Section was first inaugurated. The
story began when a small group of retired members came to the conclusion that
it would be in everyone’s interest if there was some structure to their
somewhat ad hoc arrangement to their weekday meetings to play golf. This
intrepid band of stalwarts included a Mr Jimmy Lane who was installed as first
Captain in 1977. He was ably supported by: Hector Barratt, Cedric Woodger; Rex
Clever; John Spence and John Freeman all of whom can legitimately be
acknowledged as the ‘Founding Members’. The records also show that each of
them, with the exception of Jimmy Lane, subsequently became Captain of the
Section after serving one year as Secretary.
The function of Secretary was far removed from that seen by
current holders of this position since there were no rules; subscriptions or
trophies to be played for. It was definitely an era of ‘Senior Citizens’ as
most of them were 65 and over. In the words of one of them “A genuine group of
old crocks”. The numbers at this time were around twenty people.
Inter club fixtures were also very limited in the early
years and it was one of the main tasks of the Secretary of the day to test out
the prospect of playing other clubs in the area, and of course negotiating a
slot with the General Committee for the return match. This task proved to be
quite difficult in those more austere years. They were eventually with
Harpenden Common which became one of their first fixtures and was very popular
with members at that time because the Harpenden course was relatively flat and
not that difficult. [author’s note: some
things never change].Another popular venue was Berkhamstead where, quote
“all the member were Gentlemen”. This status was earned by the Berkhamstead
team who waited on their guests during the meal. A further complication was the
fact that few clubs at the time had a organised Senior Section and in that
sense it could be said where John O’Gaunt Led, others followed. Has time went
on and more people retired, the section grew and with it came the need for a
more permanent figure in the role of Secretary, a challenge which was take on
by John Freeman who served in that capacity for eight years. During this time
the membership continued to grow and has contact with other clubs developed the
[match] fixture list grew to include: Ramsey, Wellingborough and Ashridge.
Gathering a team together was often a problem and it was not uncommon for John
to have to press gang non-retired members to make up the numbers. [author’s note: and then some things do
change]
Another one of John’s successes at this time was his effort
to persuade the General Committee to approve internal Competitions. The first
of these was the Annual Medal Trophy which he very generously donated and was
first played for in 1979.
At this time, the General Committee also granted permission
for the Seniors to hold a Member and Guest day which also included a handsome
trophy donated by Phil Whitbread. Another very welcome addition to the trophy
collection at this time was donated by the Trustees Savings Bank for the annual
match against the Club Juniors. This came about because by now subscriptions
had been introduced and the £1 membership fee required the Section to open an
account. When John finally handed over to Frank Tilley in 1986, the number of
inter club matches had risen to 10 with 8 internal fixtures.
Shortly after Frank’s term of office, the vogue for early
retirement began and very quickly the membership had risen from forty to
ninety. With membership increasing and the popularity of the Club’s Senior
Section becoming more established, the fixture list grew to the point where the
club set a ceiling thirteen home matches. By the time Frank gave up the post of
Secretary the Section was in desperate need of help and the role of treasurer
and Leo Pickett took office.
A further phase in the development of the Senior Section
came with the appointment of Gilbert Stewart as Secretary in 1991 and, at his
behest, the establishment of a Section Committee which is now appointed and
approved annually at the Section Annual general meeting. At the time of writing
the membership stands at 170 with the Section being self financing and able to
contribute funds to the Juniors’ Section as well as selected charities. The
Seniors do not ask the Club for financial aid and contribute significantly to
Club income through bar takings as well as supporting the catering facility.
The annual Christmas prize-giving dinner which was inaugurated in 1979 is now a
major event in the Club diary providing the Section with an opportunity to show
its appreciation to the Club management and administrative team for their value
support.
In conclusion, it is worth noting the contribution that many
of the Seniors have made to the overall running of John O’Gaunt. Jimmy Lane for
instance, served on the General Committee and later became President of the
Club from 1979 to 1985. Cedric Woodger became Club Captain in 1982.
Mr Cedric Woodger
Club Captain 1982
Finally, the primary and real success story of the Seniors’
Section is the camaraderie and friendship which has grown up between members
and fellow members of other clubs that distinguish it not just as one Section
within John O’Gaunt Golf Club but as a
fraternity which works so well for its members and for the general Club as a
whole.
Throughout the years the list of trophies for which the Seniors
now play has grown to include the following:
Trophy
|
Format
|
John Freeman
|
Annual Medal Trophy
|
Rex Clever
|
Championship Trophy
|
Rex Bullock
|
Shield
|
Reg Batson
|
Aggregate Shield
|
TSB
|
Trophy
|
The Kethro Tray
|
Captain’s Trophy
|
Phil. Whitbread
|
Member and Guest
|
Gordon Percival
|
Team Trophy
|
Donator unknown
|
Annual Stableford Trophy
|
Harry Bailiff
|
Bailiff Shield
|
Neville Hoole
|
Trophy
|
Arthur Lucas
|
Cup
|
Bessant/East
|
Scratch Trophy
|
Donator Unknown
|
Foursomes Knockout Trophy
|
Green/Tilley
|
Singles Knockout Trophy
|
Year
|
Captain
|
Year
|
Captain
|
1977
|
J Lane
|
2000
|
M R T Holmwood
|
1978
|
C A Woodger
|
2001
|
R M Horley
|
1979
|
RF Cleaver
|
2002
|
J Allan
|
1980
|
J Spencer
|
2003
|
E J Crome
|
1981
|
J Freeman
|
2004
|
P S Morris
|
1982
|
R G Bullock
|
2005
|
L W T Tharby
|
1983
|
F C Snape
|
2006
|
C M Poole
|
1984
|
A N Pirie
|
2007
|
B J Bullen
|
1985
|
J Nichols
|
2008
|
T F Hazell
|
1986
|
W G Wilson
|
2009
|
A D Bliss
|
1987
|
L Seeley
|
2010
|
Dr F D Moyniham
|
1988
|
R G Parrott
|
2011
|
W E Skelding
|
1989
|
W M Hyde
|
2012
|
R L Smith
|
1990
|
J Hellyer
|
2013
|
J Moms
|
1991
|
P G East
|
2014
|
A A Fowler
|
1992
|
J G Ince
|
2015
|
R G Coventry
|
1993
|
R D Hutchinson
|
2016
|
J A Peacock
|
1994
|
J G Windsor
|
2017
|
F Williams
|
1995
|
R Batson
|
2018
|
J Kerr
|
1996
|
R Emery
|
2019
|
D Gauge
|
1997
|
Marshall
|
2020
|
|
1998
|
T J Pugh
|
2021
|
|
1999
|
W H R Howard
|
2022
|
